9 NW Dothan - Newton - 7.2 NW Dothan
Tornado touchdown in Currytown Community Trailer Park along Dale County Road 49, Dean Road, and Alabama 134 between Pinckard and Midland City. Three mobile homes were destroyed and four were heavily damaged. 16-18 residences sustained structural damage. Six barns were leveled and four were damaged. Numerous large trees and power poles down.

Start: 31.2600/-85.5400
End: 31.2600/-85.5100

29

1997

12

24

0717

Houston

F2

3.0

300

0

5

11.6 W Dothan - Wicksburg - 8.7 WNW Dothan
Tornado skipped through a mobile home park along County Road 9 and Market Street. Two mobile homes destroyed with more than a dozen damaged. Large power poles and trees toppled. Winds overturned small airplane off County Road 81 near Harmon School. A large tree blown onto a house on County Road 75. Residence destroyed on Alabama Highway 84 West in Wicksburg.

Start: 31.2200/-85.5900
End: 31.2400/-85.5400

28

1997

12

24

0639

Geneva

F1

1.0

100

0

1

Eunola
Tornado touchdown one mile east of Geneva at the intersection of County Roads 4 and 6 damaging 6 to 10 residences. 10 to 15 homes and trailers damaged on J.P. Jones Road near Oak Grove. Numerous trees and power lines down. Considerable damage to Christmas decorations at Fowler Park in Geneva.

Start: 31.0500/-85.8500
End: 31.0500/-85.8500

27

1997

11

21

2245

Covington

F1

0.5

150

0

0

1 S Opp
A tornado briefly touched down one mile south of Opp near the community of Beulah. Three homes were hit by the tornado. One home was completely destroyed and two others suffered major damage. Five family members in the destroyed home said they huddled in the hallway and were not injured. They said it sounded like a freight train moved through. Two large empty chicken houses were also destroyed. A barn and several outbuildings also suffered damage. Trees and power lines were blown down. Several vehicles and farm implements also were damaged by the fallen trees. One cow was killed by the debris. Another cow was found wandering in the road, but there was no way for the cow to have gotten there unless it was picked up and set on the other side of a fence that was not damaged by the storm.

Start: 31.2700/-86.2500
End: 31.2700/-86.2500

26

1997

11

21

1940

Mobile

F3

1.0

300

0

0

Saraland
An F3 tornado touched down just east of Interstate 65 in Saraland near Shelton Beach Estates. The tornado skipped east northeast along the ground before lifting back into the cloud near U S Highway 43. Three homes were almost completely gone, three more suffered major damage and about sixty homes in the middle-class neighbourhood suffered some damage. Most of the damage was consistent with an F1 or F2 tornado. No one was injured. Several people knew they were under a tornado warning and were able to take cover before the storm struck. Most of the residents said they did not hear the familiar "Freight Train Sound" before the tornado struck.

Start: 30.8200/-88.0700
End: 30.8200/-88.0700

25

1997

10

26

1000

Houston

F1

2.0

150

0

0

2 S Gordon - 2.7 SE Gordon
F1 tornado moved across Houston County Road 85. Two homes sustained extensive roof damage. A semitractor trailer was overturned. Numerous trees and power lines down in Ashford and Gordon.

Daleville
A brief F0 tornado touchdown south of Alabama Highway 84 near Daleville.

Start: 31.3000/-85.7200
End: 31.3000/-85.7200

22

1997

10

25

1710

Mobile

Started in Mississippi

F1
(F1)

1.0
(13)

300
(300)

0
(0)

0
(7)

Wilmer
The tornado that moved through the Howell Community in Mississippi then moved into Mobile County where the storm blew down several trees and damaged some outbuildings before lifting back into the cloud near U S Highway 98 just west of Wilmer. As in George County, the tornado was only on the ground for a short period of time. No injuries were reported in Mobile County.

Start: 30.8200/-88.3800
End: 30.8200/-88.3500

21

1997

10

25

1230

Butler

F0

1.0

150

0

0

5 NW Greenville
An F0 tornado touched down about five miles northwest of Greenville along State Road 185. The tornado began about a mile west of State Road 185 and moved toward 185 then went back into the cloud near State Road 185. The weak tornado skipped along the ground for about one mile and damage was about 150 yards wide along the track. Most of the damage was to trees. A metal garage along Highway 185 was the only structure to suffer major damage. No one was injured.

Start: 31.8800/-86.7000
End: 31.8800/-86.7000

20

1997

10

24

1030

Dale

F1

0.5

100

0

0

Echo
F1 tornado struck a chicken farm at Alabama Highway 27 and Dale County Road 67. Six of eight chicken houses were destroyed. Approximately 25,000 chickens were killed.

Start: 31.4800/-85.4700
End: 31.4800/-85.4700

19

1997

10

24

1000

Dale

F1

0.3

73

0

0

Clayhatchee
A small F1 tornado destroyed a barn on Alabama Highway 92. A neighboring house sustained minor damage. Several trees were uprooted.

Start: 31.2300/-85.7500
End: 31.2300/-85.7500

18

1997

7

28

1445

Cullman

F0

1.0

30

0

0

Holly Pond
A weak tornado occurred about 4 miles north-northeast of Holly Pond in northeast Cullman County. The weak tornado destroyed one chicken house, damaged another chicken house, tore shingles from a couple of structures, and destroyed three abandoned and decaying chicken houses. The tornado path extended from just west-northwest of the intersection of CR 71 and SR 52 southeastward for about 1 mile.

Orange Beach
A tornado developed along the outer bands of Hurricane Danny and moved in from the gulf and destroyed a marina just south of Orange Beach. Several boats in the marina were damaged. The tornado was only on the ground for a short period of time. No one was injured by the tornado.

Start: 30.2800/-87.5700
End: 30.2800/-87.5700

15

1997

6

16

1208

Colbert

F1

3.0

50

0

1

Leighton
A tornado touched down near the intersection of Sockwell Lane and CR 22 and moved nearly due east causing damage to five houses in the area where it first touched down and to the high school near the end of the track. One person was injured when he fell down the stairs heading to shelter. Several trees were also downed. Several storage sheds were destroyed, too.

Start: 34.7000/-87.5500
End: 34.7000/-87.5000

14

1997

5

25

1823

Madison

F0

0.2

30

0

0

Huntsville
A weak tornado touched down briefly south of Huntsville at the corner of Airport Road and Memorial Parkway. The awning of a Winn Dixie was ripped off. It was seen and video taped by several citizens and by a Channel 31 meteorologist.

Start: 34.7300/-86.6200
End: 34.7300/-86.6200

13

1997

5

3

1640

Madison

F0

1.5

50

0

0

Owens Crossroads
A small tornado damaged roofs to 15 homes and downed a number of trees in Owens Crossroads.

Start: 34.5800/-86.4700
End: 34.5800/-86.4700

12

1997

5

3

1634

Madison

F0

1.3

40

0

0

NW Owens Crossroads
A short tornado hit the Big Cove area of southeast Madison County damaging several houses and the wastewater treatment plant. A busienss with machinery outside and several tin-roofed buildings were also damaged. One older house that appeared abandoned was destroyed.

Start: 34.6500/-86.5000
End: 34.6500/-86.4700

11

1997

5

3

1626

Madison

F2

1.3

70

0

1

Meridianville
A short but powerful tornado struck the area northwest of Meridianville destroying four homes along with major damage to two otehrs and minor damage to twelve more. The tornado path began in an hope area just southwest of the Colonial Golf Course. The torndo moved through a small subdivision on the north and east sides of the golf course and moved into an open area again as it dissipated.

Start: 34.8700/-86.5800
End: 34.8800/-86.5800

10

1997

5

3

1602

Limestone

F2

3.2

73

0

12

Athens
A tornado, rated at F2 on the Fujita Scale, struck the southern and eastern sections of Athens in Limestone County. The tornado path began about 2 miles south-southwest of Athens near the intersection of Sanderfer Road and County Road 45. The tornado moved northeasterly crossing through southern and eastern sections of Athens. It crossed the intersection of State Road 127 and US 72 where several businesses were damaged. Some damage was caused at Athens Middle School. The tornado continued northeast dissipating near the intersection of Pryor Street and US 31 near Athens High School. According to EMA officals, six homes were destroyed, 14 homes sustained major damage, and an additional 14 homes had minor damage. Three apartment buildings, each with eight units, were damaged, 13 businesses had major damage, and two businesses reported minor damage. Of the 12 injuries, two were described as serious.

Start: 34.7700/-87.0000
End: 34.8000/-86.9700

9

1997

5

3

1545

Limestone

F0

1.0

50

0

0

Reid
A small tornado touched down at Paradise Shores on the Limestone County side of the Tennessee River downing several trees and causing minor damage to several houses. One tree fell on a car while another fell into a three-car garage damaging a collection of Harley-Davidson motorcycles.

Rainsville
An F2 tornado tracked from southwest to northeast across the center of Rainsville. The tornado began at 3:53 pm CDT three miles southwest of Rainsville just south of the intersection of County Roads 92 and 72. The tornado moved northeastward directly through the downtown section of Rainsville at the intersection of State Highways 75 and 35. Damage was severe to a number of buildings including the Rainsville police and fire department station and a number of commercial buildings. The tornado continued northeast crossing Dilbeck and Marshall Roads before ending about two miles northeast of Rainsville on the east side of Marshall Road. The tornado severely damaged a large poultry raising facility and debris from the chicken houses was blown over half a mile further to the northeast. The tornado had dissipated by 4:01 pm CDT. At the Rainsville police station, eleven of 12 police cars were either damaged or destroyed and several of the city's fire trucks were damaged. Five of the 10 people injured were hospitalized according to emergency management officials. Damage assessment indicated that 63 homes and/or apartments were damaged or destroyed along with 34 businesses. The tornado path was five miles in length and about 220 yards wide at the widest.

Start: 34.4700/-85.9000
End: 34.5200/-85.8500

7

1997

2

21

0935

Shelby

F0

0.5

50

0

0

2.0 NW Maylene
Several trees downed and roof damage to homes in Brantleyville.

Start: 33.2200/-86.8800
End: 33.2200/-86.8800

6

1997

1

28

0008

Tuscaloosa

F2

2.0

73

0

1

5.0 N Coker-5.5 NNE Coker
Several trees downed. Several homes had roof damage and one home was completely deroofed.

5.0 S Tuscaloosa-8.0 ENE Tuscaloosa
Structure damage along the path and numerous trees downed. One fatality occurred in a vehicle.

Start: 33.1300/-87.5700
End: 33.2500/-87.4300

4

1997

1

24

1450

Lawrence

F1

3.0

73

0

0

S Moulton
A weak tornado touched down in the William B. Bankhead National Forest and tracked across Highway 33 at the lookout tower. The majority of damage was done to trees and some damage was done to the Forest Service buildings at the tower.

N Newville
A tornado touched down north of Newville, knocking a small wood frame house off its blocks. Two miles further east the tornado caused extensive damage to a home and destroyed another unoccupied home. A barn was destroyed and several vehicles were damaged. The tornado then damaged a house two miles further east. Finally, another two miles east it damaged a house.

Start: 31.4500/-85.3300
End: 31.5000/-85.2300

1

1997

1

5

0030

Jackson

F0

2.7

50

0

0

SE Stevenson
A thunderstorm hit the Flat Rock area at exactly 12:30 am with what was probably a weak tornado. A church sustained heavy damage; the west wall collapsed and the roof fell in. Forty to 50 -foot oak trees near the church were downed. About a mile down the path of damage, a roof had shingles lifted off and several large trees were downed. About two miles from the church, 15 to 20 large pine trees were downed. The damage was very isolated to the path. A house 100 feet from the church sustained no damage.